Heater and thermostat attachment for motors.



T. C. LEAKE. HEATER AND THERMOSTAT ATTACHMENT FOR MOTORS.-

APPLICATION FILED APR.9| I914.

Patented Apr. 27, 1915.

a. m M m To all whom it'may concern:

THOMAS C.- LEAKE, OF SAN FRANCISCO, CALIFORNIA, ASSIGNOR T LEAKE MOTOR FUEL ECONOMY COMPANY, A CORPORATION OF CALIFORNIA.

HEATER AND THERMOSTAT ATTACHMENT FOR MOTORS.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Be it known that I, THOMAS Q. LnaKn, a citizen of the United States, residing in the city and county of San Francisco and State of California, have invented new and useful Improvements in Heaters and Thermostat Attachments for Motors, of which the following is a specification.

The invention relates to internal combustion engines and-"particularly to a means for feeding fuel thereto. I

It is very desirable to employ comparatively heavy hydrocarbons, such as distillate, as the fuel'in internal combust1on 'en gines, owing to its low cost in comparlson with the cost of the lighter hydrocarbons such as gasolene, but great difiiculty has been heretofore experienced in starting the cold engine on distillate.

It is one of the objects of my invention to provide a fuel feeding means whereby the engine, even when cold, may be started on distillate as a fuel.

A further object of the invention is to provide means for feeding distillate directly to the cylinders when the engine is cold andfor automatically cutting oif this feed and supplying the fuel in the usual way, by means of a carbureter, when the engine becomes Warm. I

The invention possesses other advantageous features, some of which, with the foregoing, will be set forth at length in the following description where I shall outline in full that form of the invention which I have selected for illustration in the drawings accompanying and forming part of the present specification. In said drawings, I have shown only one form of my invention but it is to be understood that the invention may be embodied in other forms without departing from the spirit of my invention. It is also to be understood that, by the claims succeeding the description of the invention, I desire to cover the invention in whatever form it may be embodied.

In said drawings: Figure 1 is an elevation of an internal combustion engine showing the apparatus of, my invention attached thereto, Fig. 2 is a longitudinal section of the thermostatic means for controlling the flow of fuel. Fig. 3 is a section of the controlling valve, taken on the linew-m Fig. 2. Fig. 4c is a, longitudinal section 'ofthe fuelheater taken on the line yy Fig. 5.

distillate becomes sufficiently warm.

Fig. 5 is a cross section of the fuel heater taken on the line 2-2 Fig. a. Fig. 6 is a view of the under side of the pipe 18 on a larger scale, showing the vent hole.

As shown in the drawings, A. represents the cylinders of an engine, 2 the manifold, and 3 the carbureter supplying the mixture to the engine chamber.

4: is a suitable container for the hydrocar bon to be used, which hydrocarbon is led by a pipe 5 to the heater. This heater is represented by a casing 6, through which an exhaust pipe 7 passes, and the pipe 5 forms a coil 8 of as many turns as may be found desirable, which coil passes around in the casing 6 and has its exit through a pipe 9. When the engine starts, the exhaust pipe becomes .heated, and the temperature of the distillate is raised to such a point that it is readily vaporized in the oarbureter. The

carburetor is of the usual construction, be-

I ing provided with a float and float chamber,

Patented a as, rare.

unvaporized distillate into the upper part of the manifold before the distillate becomes suiflciently warm to be vaporized by the carburetor and for shutting ofi this supply direct to the manifold as soon as the I By introducing the cold distillate into the upper portion of the manifold, it is readily drawn into the cylinders where it explodes, whereas, in its cold condition, it cannot be raised through the manifold from the carbureter. The distillate is conveyed into the carbureter through the pipe 11 and between pipe 9 and pipe 11 is a hollow casing 10 through which the distillate passes. The casing 10 is provided intermediate its end with an outlet 12, which is connected to the manifold by the pipe 18. This pipe extends upward in a loop above the level of tank 4, so that when the engine is cold and at a stand still, the distillate will not continually fiow into the manifold. At the upper or looped part of pipe 18 I provide a very small vent hole 21 which admits air to the pipe very slowly, so that, with the outlet 12 open and the engine stopped, the distillate will not siphon into the manifold. The air vent also allows the distillate on the discharge side of pipe 18 to slowly pass into the manifold when the outlet 12 has been closed, but the size of the vent is such thatit does not prevent the distillate being drawn into the manifold when the engine is being turned over or is turning over, and the outlet 12 is open, and does not allow distillate to dis. charge through the aperture.

Thermostatic means are employed for closing the outlet 12 when the temperature ofthe distillate reaches the required degree. Arranged over the outlet 12 is a ball valve 13 connected to the rod 17 by means of the links 14, and means are employed for depressing the rod 17 and seating the ball when the temperature of the distillate in casing 10 has reached the required degree. This means consists of two rods 15, which may be of Zinc or other material which will expand to a greater extent than the outer casing in which they are contained. At the outer ends these rods are pivoted, as at 16, and at their inner ends they are pivoted together at their point of meeting, and a connecting-hod 17 depends from the joint so that the links 14 are connected with its lower end. The object of this construction is to provide for the opening and closing of the valve 13 by the variation in temperature of the bars 15. An important point in this construction is in so constructing the hollow case lOthat the meeting point of the rods 15 is below their pivot point 16 at the outer end. It will be seen, therefore, that when the liquid enters this pipe, the temperature will control the movement of the rods 15 and the valve 13. Normally, the valve 13 will he open by reason of the construction of the rods 15 which lift it from its seat.

The operation of the apparatus is as follows: Assuming that the engine and the distillate are cold, and that the engine is at standstill. In this condition the outlet 12 v is open. As the engine is turned over, distillate is drawn through the pipe 18 into the upper end of the manifold and thence into the cylinders, where it ignites and starts the engine. This method of running is not economi'cal and is advisable only at starting.

i I claim and desire to secure by Letters Patent is-- 1. An attachment for an internal combustion engine having a manifold and carbureteig consisting of a hydrocarbon fuel sup-- ply pipe connected to the carbureter, a pipe connecting the fuel supply pipe with the manifold, means for heating the fuel, and means operated by the rise in temperature of the fuel for cutting off the flow of fuel directed into the manifold.

2. An attachment for an internal combusflow of hydrocarbon directed to'the mani-' fold.

3. An attachment for an internal combustion engine having a manifold, consisting of means for introducing liquid hydrocarbon directly into said manifold, means for heating the hydrocarbon before it enters the .manifold, and means operated by a rise in temperature of the hydrocarbon for cutting off the direct supply thereof to the manifold.

4. An attachment for an internal combus-v tion engine having a manifold and carbureter, consisting of a fuel supply tank, pipes connecting said tank with the carbureter and with the manifold, whereby fuel is fed to the carbureter and directly to the manifold and means for automatically centrollingthe supply of fuel'directed to the manifold.

5. An attachment for an internal combus- I tion engine provided with a manifold and carbureterand exhaust pipe, consisting of 'a fuel supply tank, a conductor extending from said tank to the carbureter disposed in thermal communication with the exhaust pipe, a casing interposed in said pipe, 21 pipe leading from said casing to the upper part of the manifold whereby fuel may be fed directly into the manifold, and thermally operated means in said casing for controlling the flow of fuel through saidlast mentioned pipe.

6. An attachment for an internal combustion engine provided with a manifold, carbureter and exhaust pipe, consisting of a fuel supply tank, pipes connecting said tank with the carburetor and with the manifold and disposed in thermal communication with the exhaust pipe, whereby the fuel isheated, and means for automatically con-' trolling the flowv of fuel directed to the manifold.

7 An attachment for an internal combustion engine provided with a manifold, carbu-reter and exhaust pipe, consisting of a fuel supply tank, a casing, a pipe extending from. said tankto said casing and in thermal communication with the exhaust pipe,

a pipe connecting the casing with the ca r-r bureter, a third pipe connecting the casing with the upper part of the manifold, a valve controlling the communication betweenv the casing and said third pipe-and a thermostat in said casing for controlling the position of said valve.

'8. An attachment for an internal combustion engine provided'with a manifold, ca;- bureter and exhaust pipe, consisting om fuel supply tank, a fuel pipe connectingthe tank with the carbureter and disposed in.

thermal communication with the exhaust pipe, a pipe connecting said fuel pipe with the upper-part of the manifold' and extending above. the level of the supply tank, and thermally operated means for controlling the flow of fluid through said last named pipe.

In testimony whereof I have hereunto set my hand in the presence of two subscribing Witnesses.

THO AS C. LEAKE. Witnessesi A. V. STEVENS,

EUGENE P. JONES. 

